Some Common Signs of LD

Parents are often the first to notice that "something doesn't seem right." There may
be a number of reasons why your child is having a hard time. But what you are
seeing could also indicate a learning disability. It doesn’t mean your child is "slow" or
less intelligent than her peers. Her brain is simply wired differently for learning and
she needs to adapt strategies that make the most of her abilities. The earliest
possible intervention is critical to her success in school. Learn to recognize the signs
of a potential learning disability. If you have observed several of these signs in your
child, consider the possibility of a learning disability.

The following is a checklist of characteristics that may point to a learning disability.

Most people will, from time to time, see one or more of these warning signs in their
children. This is normal. If, however, you see several of these characteristics over a
long period of time, consider the possibility of a learning disability.

Infancy • Difficulty with buttoning,

• Lack of, or excessive
response to sounds or other
stimulus
• Trouble following movements
with eyes
• Unusual sleep patterns
• Delays in sitting, standing,
walking
• Little or no vocalization
• Irritability
• Preschool
• Speaks later than most
children
• Slow vocabulary growth,
often unable to find the right
words,
• Pronunciation problems
• Difficulty making rhymes
• Trouble learning numbers,
alphabet, days of the week,
colors, shapes
• Trouble concentrating
• Trouble interacting with
peers
• Difficulty following directions
or learning routines
zipping, and typing skills
• Difficulty controlling pencil,
crayons, scissors
• Tendency to trip, or bump
into things
• Trouble interacting with
peers
Grades K-4
• Trouble learning the
connection between letters
and sounds
• Difficulty with reading and
comprehension
• Makes consistent reading and
spelling errors including letter
reversals (b/d), inversion
(m/w), transposition
(felt/left), and substitutions
(house/home)
• Transposes number
sequences and confuses
arithmetic signs (+, -, x, /,
=)
• Trouble remembering facts
 • Takes a long time to learn
new skills, relies heavily on
memorization
• Unstable pencil grip, poor
printing, writing
• Trouble learning about the
concept of or telling time
• Poor coordination, unaware
of physical surroundings,
prone to accidents
• Difficulty cutting with
scissors, coloring and printing
inside lines
• Trouble tying laces, button
clothes, or get dressed
• Difficulty playing with more
then one child at a time, may
prefer to play alone
• Difficulty remembering the
names of things: the
seasons, the months, streets,
etc.
• Confuses basic words (run,
eat, want)
Grades 5-8
• Reverses letter sequences
(soiled/solid, left/felt)
• Slow to learn prefixes,
suffixes, root words and
other spelling strategies
• Avoids reading aloud
• Trouble with word problems
• Difficulty with handwriting
• Difficulty with keeping up
with papers or assignments
• Difficulty with reading
comprehension or math skills
• Difficulty with time
management skill
• Slow or poor recall of facts
• Difficulty making friends
• Trouble understanding body
language and facial
expressions
• Trouble understanding oral
discussions and expressing
ideas and relating events in
sequence
• Difficulty organizing his/her
bedroom, notebook, papers,
desk
High School Students/Adults
• Continues to spell incorrectly,
frequently spells the same
word differently in a single
piece of writing, laborious
handwriting
• Avoids reading and writing
tasks
• Difficulty with putting
thoughts on paper
• Trouble summarizing
• Trouble with open-ended
questions on tests
• Weak memory skills
• Difficulty adapting skills from
one setting to another
• Works slowly
• Difficulty grasping abstract
concepts
• Either pays too little attention
to details or focuses on them
too much
• Misreads information/lacks
logic, poor reasoning ability
• Vulnerable to peer pressure,
often the 'scapegoat' in
situations
• Difficulty organizing and/or
concentrating on homework

It is never too early to seek help for your child, but waiting too long could be very
harmful. If you see several of these signs over an extended period of time, consider
the possibility of a learning disability. Knowing what a difference early help can make
will help you lose your fear and take the next steps to getting help for yourself and
your child!

Adapted with permission from the Coordinated Campaign for Learning Disabilities and
Learning Disabilities Association of America
 What you should know about
LDs
• Learning Disabilities (LDs) are specific neurological disorders that affect the
brain's ability to store, process, retrieve or communicate information. They are
invisible and lifelong.
• Manifested by significant weaknesses in listening, writing, speaking, reasoning,
reading, mathermatics, social skills and/or memory in a pattern of uneven
abilities
• LDs can be compensated for through alternate ways of learning, accommodations
and modifications.
• LDs can occur with other disorders (ADHD, etc) and may run in families
• LDs are NOT the same as mental retardation, autism, deafness, blindness,
behavioral disorders or laziness.
• LDs are not the result of economic disadvantage, environmental factors or
cultural differences.
LD Terminology
Type of LDs Area of Difficulty Symptoms include Example:
trouble with:
Dyslexia Processing language Reading, writing, and Letters and words may
spelling be written or
pronounced inaccurately
Dyscalculia Math skills and concepts Computation, remembering Difficulty learning to
math facts, concepts of count by 2s, 3s, 4s
time, money, grasping
math concepts, etc
Dysgraphia Written expression Handwriting, spelling, Illegible handwriting,
expressing ideas on difficulty organizing
paper ideas, getting thoughts
on paper
Dyspraxia Fine motor skills Coordination, manual Trouble with scissors,
dexterity buttons, drawing, writing
Information Processing Disorders
Auditory Interpreting auditory Language Development, Difficulty anticipating how
Processing information reading a speaker will end a
Disorder sentence.
Visual Interpreting visual Reading, writing and math Difficulty distinguishing
Processing information letters like “h” and “n”
Disorder
Other Related Disorders
Attention Deficit Concentration and focus Over-activity, distractibility Can’t sit still, loses
Hyperactivity and/or impulsivity interest quickly, is easily
Disorder (ADHD) distracted, may daydream
 Myths and Facts about LDs
1. Myth: Learning disabilities (LDs) do not really exist.

Fact: LDs are real. Recent research indicates neurological differences in the brain
structure and function for people who have learning disabilities.

2. Myth: Learning disabilities are all the same and/or easily understood.

Fact: Learning disabilities are complicated. The extent of their impact and the areas
of learning they affect vary greatly from person to person; combine in any variety
of ways; and vary depending on context.
Helping is not as complicated: people with LDs need to determine which modes of
learning work well for them, and use these strengths to compensate for the areas
affected by their LD.

3. Myth: Students with LDs cannot learn.

Fact: Students with LDs can be successful learners, at all levels and in any
situation, by compensating for their weaknesses by using their strengths; by using
alternative, individualized teaching and learning materials and methods; and by
choosing tasks that suit themselves.

4. Myth: More boys than girls have learning disabilities.

Fact: Although four times as many boys as girls are identified as having LDs by
schools, research studies suggest that many girls who are not identified also have
the most common form of learning problem - difficulty with reading. Many girls'
learning difficulties are neither identified nor treated - possibly because boys who
are struggling are, in general, more disruptive in classes.

5. Myth: Students with LDs are just lazy.

Fact: Students with LDs generally have to spend more time to adequately complete
school assignments. This extended effort can often lead to difficulties in completing
assignments on time, maintaining course requirements such as tutorial reading and
studying. These difficulties should not be misinterpreted as 'laziness'.

6. Myth: Students diagnosed with LDs at school age should have outgrown
them by adulthood.

Fact: LDs are a lifelong condition. If the diagnosis of a learning disability in

childhood is accurate, the disability will endure into adulthood. Specific learning
strategies and adjustments can be developed to address problems, and can make it
so that LDs are not a pressing issue, but the learning disability itself remains.

7. Myth: Learning disabilities are a school issue.

Fact: LDs affect one or more modes of learning, anywhere that mode is used. LDs
tend to be noticed most often when they impact on school-learning, but exist in all
areas of life - work, family, relationships, etc.

8. Myth: Accommodating the needs of students with LDs in schools is too

difficult, time consuming and expensive.

Fact: Accommodations implemented for students with LDs are also generally good
examples of universal learning strategies. They can improve teaching and learning,
not just for students with LDs, but also for the overall student population and other
minority groups, such as people from a non-English speaking background. Teachers
can also benefit from this approach by developing a range of flexible teaching and
learning strategies that can be implemented in a number of different environments.

9. Myth: Providing academic adjustments such as accommodations and

individualized teaching gives students with LDs an unfair advantage over
other students.

Fact: Academic adjustments are determined on identified deficit's resulting from a

student's LDs. Adjustments ensure equal and fair participation in a learning
environment and ensure actual learning is recognized. Students with LDs are
required to meet the same academic standards as their peers.

10. Myth: LDs can be cured.

Fact: There have been occasional claims by individuals of "curing" learning

disabilities in various ways. Learning disabilities are a life-long condition; many
people learn to successfully use accommodations and strategies with their LDs to
such an extent that it is no longer an issue for them, and certain intensive study
methods do help some people, but there is no researched evidence that one
person's solution will work for all.